Acer suffers as CEO quits

Shares of Acer plummeted after the company announced a restructuring plan with a new chief executive and a 7 percent reduction of its workforce.

Yesterday Acer CEO J.T. Wang resigned following news of the company's significant $446 million loss during the third quarter of 2013. He will carry on as Acer's chairman for another seven months, but he will be handing over the CEO reins to Acer President Jim Wong at the start of 2014.

It appears that his exit was due to announcing a $11.4 million loss where many analysts had expected at least some profit. An additional statement issued by Acer blames "the gross margin impact of gearing up for the Windows 8.1 sell-in and the related management of inventory."

Acer shares opened down 6.9 percent, the maximum allowed in a session, at T$16.9, in a broader market that was up 0.2 percent. Citi cut Acer's target price to T$13 after the announcement, saying the restructuring efforts could not change the PC company's outlook structurally, but reducing operating expenses through headcount reduction could buy time for management to reposition its business model.